From Confession to Calling

This past Sunday was Easter Sunday. Though we were unable to meet in person, literally thousands tuned in this last week, many whom do not go to church on a regular basis. Something about Easter draws us to the church. Something about Easter draws us to Jesus. And certainly, this is not a bad thing. The problem is Easter draws us in, but it does not draw us deep by itself. And deep was always Jesus’ intention.

Perhaps the central question we asked this last week had to do with this deeper call: How is your life different because Jesus is in it? Loving Jesus is at the heart of what it means to be in a deeper relationship with him. And as we all know, love comes with a cost. Love is interesting in that it is offered freely by the one who loves us. It costs us nothing to BE loved. But there is great cost in returning that love, and until we do, it is not a love relationship. In fact, if one party offers their love, and the other does not reciprocate that love, we actually call it by another name- rejection.

The call of Jesus to go deeper requires a few critical steps. It starts with confrontation. There is no form of followership that doesn’t start with Jesus confronting what is out of alignment with Him. The final step is commissioning- a sending out of the believer to be a gospel carrier. Unfortunately, most followers never get to the commissioning because when the confrontation happened, instead of taking the middle step, they took off. That middle step is the missing link that leads to people being drawn IN but now drawn DEEP. The middle step is confession.

When Peter first encountered Jesus’ power in Luke 5, his first response was confession. “Go away from me Lord” he said, “for I am a sinful man.” When you encounter Jesus’ purity and power, you are instantly confronted with your own sinfulness. This will either lead to confession, or it will lead to hiding. Peter confessed, and God commissioned him as a disciple.

Sadly, Peter fell away. He denied Jesus three times. He had boasted that even if everyone else denied Jesus, he never would. Yet that’s exactly what he did. Eventually, after his resurrection, Jesus finds Peter fishing again. Jesus recreates that moment of calling with another miracle, and Peter knows it’s Jesus. As they share a meal together, three times, Jesus asked Peter about his love. This is not to shame him…far from it. Jesus actually wants to restore Peter again. But before that happens, Peter has to take the steps. When confronted, he must choose to confess. Only then, can he be commissioned for Jesus’ work.

This is what happens to people every Easter. The story of the death and resurrection of Christ draws us in, but it also calls us out. It confronts us and it confronts the reality of our lives and our sinfulness. The question is, what are you going to do with it this year? So many of you reading this, you are one step away from the God ordained commissioning for your life! He longs not only to forgive you, but to use you in powerful ways. He has a call for you, and a plan for your kingdom impact. All that’s standing in the way is your confession. Isn’t it time to quit running from Him? Every time you do, you’re running not only from your King, but also from your Call. This Easter, don’t run from Him. Run to Him. If you need help taking these steps, let us know at info@ransom.church. WE would LOVE to help you move from confession to finding your calling.